Everything Within My Power

2: Surprise Guest

*Beep Beep Beep Beep*

I rise from my bed. It's currently seven in the morning, and I feel rested, surprisingly. For five hours of sleep, I'm refreshed. I take the time to shower, do my hair and makeup, and get dressed. As I leave, I take one last look in the mirror. I adjust my blazer and fix the strap of my heel before heading out the door. I've always loved my wardrobe. It's something in my life I have complete control of. It isn't even the shopping that gets me, but the feeling of being comfortable in my skin. Finding comfort through clothes was always a cheat sheet to happiness for me.

While on the train to campus, I review my presentation material. I know I got this, and I can do it. I've spent hours preparing; I wish this weren't so big. I present in front of fifty people, including the professor and the dean. It's the final project, reflecting a semester's worth of research into one final presentation. This class is a big deal. I had to get a permission form because of how important it is. These last two months are dedicated to presentations since, in each class period, only two people present each day.

I shove my note cards in my bag and walk off the train. This walk is a little long but gives me time to think. It's sunny in New York today, a rare occurrence for November. I take it in for what it's worth, even in fifty-degree weather. I walk into my building and head to the classroom; thankfully, it's on the second floor, so the climb isn't terrible. I arrived 10 minutes early to stand in front of the room and get my nerves out. I've always been a people person, so speaking isn't the issue; however, this pressure is almost suffocating.

I began to pray, talking to God and getting my nerves out. Praying that I don't miss anything or hiccup while speaking. As I closed out prayer, I heard the door open. I quickly turned to the table behind me to put my notecards back in my bag, trying to look like I had just arrived.

"Hello, Odette," I hear; I whip my head to the left to see none other than Neil Abram standing before me. I'm a little flustered, and my face feels warm. "Hi Neil, nice to see you again." I give a small smile before pulling my bag to my shoulder. "Are you looking for someone specific?" I ask, turning to him. He must be; I don't see why he would be in my class today. "No, I am a guest for this class today. I am sitting in because Derrick Shaw is a partner of mine and told me there was a presentation today that would be worthwhile, something along the lines of supply chain logistics for a new plastic product and another technological presentation. Are you, by chance, in this class, Odette?" He asks. "Yes, coincidentally, that topic would be mine. I wasn't aware you and Professor Shaw were partners." I finish. Finally, my face has calmed down. "To some extent, yes, before he stepped into education, we used to work with one another a little over a year ago." He answers. "Im looking forward to your presentation, Odette." He says. "Thank you, Neil." Right as I finish, people start to file in. I take my seat in the front while Neil speaks with Professor Shaw.

As the class settles, Professor Shaw begins to speak. "Alright, good morning, everyone. As you all know, today starts presentations for your semester-long projects. As a reminder, you will be graded by the dean and myself. Today, we have Alex Young and Odette Sloan presenting. We also have a guest viewer today. Everyone, this is an old partner of mine, Neil Abram. He's a youngster on Wall Street, but I'm sure some of you have heard of him, to say the least." Shaw continues to review the importance of the assignment and how our presentations and research documents could be used for the school in the future. "Now that all the formalities are out of the way. Odette, I'll hand the floor to you." I walk up to the front as Neil, the dean, and Shaw all head to the front row.

Pulling up my presentation, I take the floor with my killer intro. "In a world full of plastic, who can we tell what is good plastic or bad? To introduce myself, my name is Odette Sloan, and today, I will speak on the importance of supply chain innovation through this new plastic. I will also discuss new plastic by-products that break down over time, rather than its more authentic counterparts." It's a killer intro completed effortlessly if I do say so myself. I took the following slides to discuss other topics in my presentation. While going through my slides, I take the same mind when I sing—engaging with the room and keeping my body posture exactly where I need it to be. I lock eyes with Neil for almost a minute towards the end of my presentation.

I fixed my gaze and turned to my last slide. "So we can understand that introducing this new plastic can be achieved through these strategies and potential partnerships. Does anyone have any questions?" I give a final look around the room. "No questions, Odette; I'll have Neil reach out to you later for time." Professor Shaw states as I take my seat. "Alex, you're up next." He says as Alex makes his way up to the front. Going through his presentation, I started to zone out a bit. Alex had the lights off for his presentation as he showed a video of some new night vision technology. He's reviewing the importance of government policy with commercial businesses and dangerous products. His material is good, but I have a hard time paying attention. I look slightly to my right, and coincidentally, Neil does simultaneously. We lock eyes for a moment but shift our focus to the board.

"Odette, I chose you to go first today because your research paper was outstanding. I only bring in a guest speaker to one presentation for my top two students in the class: you and Alex. I don't want to say too much before spoiling what will happen, so I'll hand it off to the dean." Professor Shaw says, passing it over to the dean. "Right, Odette, I have personally reviewed your paper, and I have to say I am impressed. With that being said, we have an offer for you. There is an annual business conference held for exceptional students across the US. It's a conference where select students from various schools like Ivey Leagues and other well-known universities present different research ideas given to them specifically in this class. After reading your report, I formally invite you to present your research this year at the conference." The dean finishes. Im so surprised; I had no idea. "I would love to. Im so glad to hear that my work has been recognized." I respond. "Perfect, Professor Shaw will reach out to you with the date and all the details. I think that covers everything on my end. Derrick, do you have anything?" The dean asks Shaw. "Nope, that covers everything. Excellent job today, Odette. Excuse me and the dean; we have a board meeting." We exchanged goodbyes, and I turned to Neil.

"You did well today. I am impressed. I wasn't given your paper beforehand, but I would love to read it when you can send it to me. You know when you're not signing, haha." I chuckle, "I'll be sure to send it to you. When you said, 'hope to see you soon' the other night, I never expected you to judge my presentation." I chuckle. He laughs. "Me neither. Honestly, I wasn't expecting to see you here." He says. "Before I head off, I wanted to tell you I'll be at the Pearl this weekend. I am treating a few partners of mine to the experience." He says. "Good to hear; I look forward to your appearance." We both lightly laugh before saying our goodbyes and parting ways.

Today couldn't be any more coincidental. For the rest of the day, I think about how this weekend will turn out...